Thanks a billion to our new friend Nels for some awesome photos from the “not a potluck” BBQ and dance party at the A-frame on Saturday night.

As I’ve mentioned, most everything out here is a potluck. Even the “not a potluck” BBQ turned into … you guessed it… a party where people bring food to share: also known as… well you get the picture.

Anyway, at least this party was unique in the unusually high proportion of meat-to-veggies up for grabs. There were – count them! – at least 5 kinds of meat:

• steak
• lamb roast
• hot dogs
• unidentified white fish
• salmon

Yummy! And also Cheese-its, or some organic equivalent that tasted very close to the real deliciously processed thing.

Lucy poo-pooing the cheese-its.

Any excuse to get closer: massage circle around the kitchen island.

Getting the party started, slowly, slowly.

Me and Steve the Geologist, tearing it up.

Lucy looking happy, staring out at the awesome starry sky.

What does this have to do with farming, you ask? Well, not much, only it proves that farmers really do have the most fun.

Last night we hosted an Alice-in-Wonderland extravaganza in honor of Colin’s birthday. There were well-planned costumes, croquet, and foods that were very small.

The crew waiting for the potluck to appear

Cheshire cats (birthday boy on right)

Mad Hatter and the March Hare

There was also an impromptu dance party and staying up too late which meant that I was very very tired today when I had to get up to go to work.

I’m usually up by 6:30 or 7 at the latest, and out and about by 8; but today, it was a struggle to crawl down the stairs of the watertower at 8:15. I grabbed some rye toast, rubbed my eyes, and trudged out to water the sheep.

It was a hot day and I was tired. In the morning, I shoveled, carted and spread a little over 2 tons of compost to mulch 4 beds, then cleaned and stored drip irrigation from 4 overgrown greenhouses. So I don’t feel too guilty about sighing when I saw the pot of leftover spinach soup in my refrigerator at lunchtime. “I don’t want to waste, but I don’t really want to eat that either.”

So instead, I strained the soupy party out, kept the potatoes, and fried them up (no oil added, just some cumin & curry powder), and fried up two eggs over-easy to lay over the top.

I love how you can so quickly change the texture of a food and add a little spice, and make it into a different experience.

That, plus milk tea and couple cookies from our baking extravaganza last night, and I was ready to face the afternoon.